NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y., April 6, 2024 – The Monroe College Mustangs men's volleyball team won the first-ever NJCAA Region 15 Men's Volleyball Championship on Saturday at the Monroe Athletic Complex. The culmination of an unblemished Region 15 season saw the Mustangs sweep its semifinal match against Kingsborough Community College before defeating Nassau Community College in the tournament final in three sets. The Mustangs did not lose a single set this year against a Region 15 opponent en route to the inaugural Region 15 Title.
The inaugural season of Region 15 play saw the Mustangs claim the region's top seed by going 8-0 during the regular season. Monroe kept that streak alive on Saturday by going a perfect 6-for-6 against Kingsborough and Nassau. With the Region 15 Championship now in-hand, the Mustangs will turn their sites to next weekend's NJCAA Men's Volleyball Invitational.
With a strong two matches in helping the Mustangs claim the Region 15 Championship, freshman middle blocker
Damian Baker was named the NJCAA Region 15 Championship Tournament Most Valuable Player on Saturday. Baker was joined by
Briggs Wieboldt and
Timothy Reyes on the Region 15 Championship All-Tournament Team. The entire All-Tournament Team is as follows:
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Monroe - #21
Damian Baker (MVP)
Monroe - #9
Briggs Wieboldt
Monroe - #14
Timothy Reyes
Nassau - #11 Mustafa Pasha
Nassau - #17 Brian Sandmeier
BMCC - #6 Eugene Villarruz
Kingsborough - #15 Kirill Syroegin
SEMIFINAL: Monroe 3, Kingsborough 0 (25-7, 25-16, 25-19)
The Mustangs came out firing in their semifinal matchup against Kingsborough, using an early 9-0 run to take a commanding 15-3 lead in the opening set. After reaching a 19-7 score, the Mustangs rattled off six straight points to close out the first set with a 25-7 win.
Monroe took a quick 5-1 lead on the Wave in the second stanza. The Wave worked their way back this time, knotting things up at 8-8. The Mustangs responded with five straight to go back up, with a 6-1 run shortly after giving Monroe a 20-12 edge. The Wave were back within seven at 23-16, but Monroe wrapped things up from there with a pair of kills by
Devounte Bennett and
Arnau Riu Giralt to take a 2-0 lead with a 25-16 win.
The Mustangs grabbed one more big lead in the third set after going up, 10-3. Kingsborough made a big push again, scoring five in a row to make it a 12-10 score. The Mustangs held off the Wave, later going on a 5-1 run to take a 20-14 advantage. Kingsborough continued battling with the Mustangs, getting as close as four points away, but the Mustangs kept their foot on the gas to finish things off with a 25-19 win to advance to Saturday's Championship.
Damian Baker led the Mustangs with 11 kills with an absurd .833 hitting percentage, tying for the team lead with three blocks as well.
Briggs Wieboldt also hit incredibly well, using a .615 clip to register eight kills.
Ethan Grace matched those eight kills and served up three aces. Riu Giralt had six kills with three aces and three digs. Bennett threw down five kills with three blocks.
Timothy Reyes continued his strong all-around effort with 30 assists, eight digs, three blocks, two kills and an ace.
Arthur Rosa picked up seven digs and handed out six assists.
CHAMPIONSHIP: Monroe 3, Nassau 0 (25-20, 25-11, 25-15)
The Mustangs and Lions got off to a tight start in Saturday's title match, reaching an early 10-10 stalemate in the first set. The Mustangs then started to gain some distance from the Lions, using a 4-1 run to go up, 16-12. The Lions were back within two at 19-17 before the Mustangs scored 4-of-5 to take a 23-18 advantage, leading shortly after to a 25-20 win for Monroe to go up, 1-0.
The Mustangs caught fire in the second set, grabbing an early 7-2 edge on the Lions. They later scored 8-of-9 points to take a comfortable 17-6 lead. The Mustangs kept rolling throughout the rest of the set, securing a dominant 25-11 win to take a two-set lead in the championship match.
The third frame was even to start with both teams matching up at five points. The Mustangs then scored the next six points to begin pulling away with an 11-5 advantage. Three points in a a row for Monroe later had the Mustangs up, 19-11, looking like a Mustang championship was inevitable. Three kills in a row by Baker,
Vene Gase and Wieboldt made it a 22-13 game, with the Mustangs not wasting much more time before claiming a 25-15 win to earn the inaugural Region 15 Championship.
Grace took the lead in the championship match with nine kills, two blocks and an ace. Wieboldt was next with seven kills on eight swings, adding four digs and two blocks. Riu Giralt threw down six kills and totaled four aces and five digs. Baker had another strong match with six kills and a block. Bennett made a team-high three blocks to go with five kills. Reyes passed around 32 assists with seven digs, two aces and two kills. Rosa picked up another five digs.
Next up for the Mustangs is the second annual NJCAA Men's Volleyball Invitational, hosted by the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn, Ill. The three-day, nine-team tournament will begin with pool play on Friday, April 12.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe College marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at
www.MonroeCollegeMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (
Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (
@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (
@monroemustangs).
